Examining usability of RxFill: integrating health IT to support medication adherence

Area of Science:

• Health Informatics
• Primary Care Medicine
• Patient Adherence Research

Background:

• Over 50% of patients exhibit non-adherence to prescribed medications.
• Primary care providers (PCPs) are crucial for addressing medication non-adherence.
• Current methods for assessing adherence are often unreliable.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the usability of RxFill, an electronic health record (EHR) integrated tool, among primary care providers.
• To assess PCPs' attitudes towards RxFill's utility and integration into clinical workflows.
• To identify barriers and facilitators for RxFill adoption in primary care settings.

Main Methods:

• A simulated case study involving eight primary care providers at an academic health system.
• Participants engaged in think-aloud exercises and semi-structured interviews.
• Usability was assessed using the System Usability Scale (SUS) and qualitative content analysis of transcripts.

Main Results:

• The average System Usability Scale (SUS) score was 81.25, indicating acceptable usability.
• Providers found RxFill data useful for estimating patient adherence.
• Running medication reports was time-intensive, and limited time for chart review hindered practical use.

Conclusions:

• RxFill data is valuable for adherence assessment but requires improvements in ease of use and workflow integration.
• Successful implementation necessitates accessible dispense dates/fill indicators and consideration of provider workload.
• Widespread adoption depends on community pharmacy engagement and reliable fill data transmission.